PITTSBURGH — There is a lot of discussion around Pittsburgh about the future of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. This felt like the last hurrah for Roethlisberger, his last best shot at getting another Super Bowl ring. It didn't happen for him, and it is likely he will never hoist another Lombardi as a player again.
The interesting thing to me is that Roethlisberger's story is probably shared by a few other quarterbacks who are still alive in the playoffs. In fact, when you look at the mix of old, aging, star quarterbacks and young guns that are alive in the playoffs, I would argue quarterbacks are the story going into this divisional round of the playoffs.
Start in New Orleans, where the two geezers of the league, Drew Brees and Tom Brady, will square off. Both have had outstanding careers, and it feels like both are on teams that are good enough to win the Super Bowl. It also could be the last chance for both to add to their legacies given their age.
Certainly Brees has a lot more on the line than Brady. For all of his passing records, Brees has only one Super Bowl. He has gotten beat up this year and has looked old at times. There is plenty of speculation that, win or lose, Brees is going to retire after this season. That means if he doesn't win a Super Bowl he won't get another chance.
Brady has already secured his legacy as he has won six Super Bowls. True, he is trying to prove that he, not Bill Belichick, was the reason the Patriots became a dynasty, but he has already shown enough getting the Bucs to this point. Plus, there is no indication he is thinking about retiring, and the Bucs will be good again next year. So, unlike Brees, he could have one more shot.
Still, the thought of Brady winning a seventh Super Bowl with another team is enough to make this game important to his legacy in its own right.
The other old guy quarterback who is under the spotlight and may have the most pressure of any of them is Aaron Rodgers. He has home field, is the odds-on favorite to win MVP and has a team that is picked by many to get to the Super Bowl. Rodgers is a special talent, but despite that and despite all of his accolades, he has only won — and even been to — one Super Bowl. That came in 2011 when he beat the Steelers.
Rodgers, more than any quarterback, needs a second Super Bowl title to cement his legacy. He probably has two or three more runs in him, but it is hard to imagine he will be in a better position than he is this year. He needs to lead the Packers to the Super Bowl again, and he has the team to do It.
The other quarterback in the NFC playoffs is Jared Goff, and he is coming off of thumb surgery. The fact that he is even playing is amazing, so I'm not sure there is much pressure on him, especially since he has many more years.
Patrick Mahomes is on a different planet anyway, but he can take a huge step toward early entry into the elite all-time quarterback club by winning his second Super Bowl in as many years. He, like Rodgers, has home field, so the pressure is on him to win since the Chiefs have been favored to win the AFC all season.
Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson all probably answered a lot of questions and silenced a lot of critics by winning last weekend. All three young quarterbacks were facing questions about their ability to win in the playoffs. All three played well last weekend and at least showed they have the ability to lead their teams to postseason success.
But the next step is winning multiple games in a season, and that's what all three hope to accomplish. Jackson helped quiet critics last weekend with his performance in a win over the Titans. He can silence the remaining ones with another big performance on the road in a playoff game. Mayfield is playing with house money since he beat the Browns' rival, the Steelers, on the road, but it would help for him to have another good game.
Winning in the playoffs is not easy and often quarterbacks are held way too responsible for their teams success or failure. This weekend, however, the quarterbacks will all be under the spotlight as they look to either add to their legacies or silence critics.
